Currently, after printing, newspapers are arranged in bundles for distribution to various locations. This distribution is generally achieved through the use of trucks for the delivery of the bundles to the particular locations. In addition, there is now a trend among newspapers of large circulation in major metropolitan areas to first deliver the bundles to one of several distribution centers, from which centers the bundles are dispersed to the parties responsible for the delivery of the papers to the ultimate sales location, office or residence.
A major problem concerns the loading of the delivery trucks which loading continues to require the manual handling of each bundle. Such a process is, of necessity, labor intensive and time consuming, and therefore inefficient and costly.
Accordingly, it would be highly desirable to have an apparatus and method for automating the process of handling and loading bundled newspapers, and the like, onto trucks.